Driving a vehicle

In order to drive a car, you must have a driving licence. Be careful to respect the French highway code, which may be different from the one in your country !

To drive a car, you need a driver's license. Remember to follow French rules of the road, which might be different from the ones you know! If you have a driver's license from an EEA member state, it is valid in France. If you have a driver's license from a country outside the EEA, you may drive on French territory with your foreign license for the duration of your studies, on the condition that you hold a "student" residence permit. See file

Taking driver training at an "auto école" will help you become familiar with driving in France.

If you remain in France after your studies, you have one year to request the exchange of your foreign driver's license for a French license. The starting date of the year is the date on which you establish a residence permit that is no longer a student permit.

Speeding and risky driving (under the influence of alcohol or drugs, etc.) are severely punished, usually by confiscation of the driver's license. Be careful!